A research team from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has developed the first unmanned car in Hong Kong.

The research team from the Robotics Institute at the HKUST developed an “advanced unmanned passenger vehicle system” made up of several subsystems, ranging from the sensor systems to the dynamic modelling.

Among its many capabilities, the unmanned car can avoid obstacles as it travels using LiDAR (laser range finders), which achieves the perception of the obstacles, and can measure the surroundings 100 times per second.

The perception system, which is three-dimensional, generates more than 100,000 points per second, “indicating the pose of the vehicle to the surroundings.”

“We believe this is the starting point for a new generation of unmanned vehicles that saves manpower on the one hand, and enhances safety, on the other,” says the leader of the team from the Robotics Institute, Ming Liu, assistant professor in the Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering of the university, via the Xinhua News Agency.

Michael Wang, director of the HKUST Robotics Institute, comments, “we at the Robotics Institute have made a very promising start, and we look forward to continued support from the government and the private sector.”

The unmanned car was showcased during HKUST Robotics Day on Oct. 30. An autonomous UAS and an autonomous boat—both of which use similarly advanced navigation systems—were also showcased during HKUST Robotics Day.